“Steve Johns is a master drummer and bandleader. His bass playing son Daryl Johns and saxophonist wife Debbie Johns are amazing. Stellar debut and Steve proves, drummers are musicians, and pretty good producers too. Great musical Family” —Lenny White

A tightly knit modern quartet with a great feel, original tunes, arrangements and soloists! —Randy Brecker

After three decades as a key contributor to groups led by some of jazz’s greatest luminaries, Steve Johns has at last made his first recording as leader. In an era when it seems that every aspiring young jazz player, whether ready or not, feels the need to come out with his or her own recording, for someone of Steve’s abilities and experience to wait so long is almost unheard of.

Why now?

Steve explains: “I’ve reached this pivotal point in my life where our son, [bassist] Daryl Johns, is leaving home to attend the Manhattan School of Music. I wanted to capture our magic as a musical family in a bottle before he left for college. So my CD idea was born.”

Apart from the stellar music, what makes Family so compelling is that it is “family.” Joining Steve are his wife, the talented saxophonist Debbie Keefe Johns, and their son Daryl, at eighteen, already one of the most sought-after bassists in jazz. Guitarists Dave Stryker, who produced the recording, and Bob DeVos contributed greatly to the project’s success. While not related, Steve considers them “like family.”

Steve Johns’ recording debut as leader is an auspicious one and well worth the wait. And while he’ll undoubtedly continue to enhance the work of others, I hope he’ll step into the spotlight more often to showcase his own unique talents as player and composer. As Dave Stryker observes, “The best compliment you can give a musician is that he sounds like himself. Steve’s been around long enough so that he’s developed his own sound; he’s not trying to be anything other than Steve Johns, which is the way it should be.

Steve Johns’ recording debut as a leader is an auspicious one and well worth the wait!